LOCAL AND GENERAL.

Dominion, Volume 7, Issue 1901, 8 November 1913, Page 4

LOCAL AND GENERAL.

The postal authorities advise that tho ?>'?' i^ a : nu ' :n .' hound from Melbourne for Bluff, is bringing nil Australian, mail; also an English taail via Suez. She is duo to arrive hero on Wednesday. As. all arms have been called in, and tho drill areas are occupied by special constables, Territorial parades have been abandoned for the present.

Tlio riflo .matches which wero to have been fired at Trontha® to-day have been postponed, as tho military authorities have closed, tho range til] further notice. Tho Annual Synod of tho Wellington District of tho Methodist Church will open •on Tuesday next. On Monday evening tho Rev, J. J. Lowis., of Pctano, will preach tho opening sermon, taking as his subject "Tho Truth About Hell." Slot telephones ato wanted at Lower •Hutt and i'eiono, In tho Ilouso of Representatives yesterday, Mr. T. M. Wilfold gave notice to ask the Post-master-General whether ho will provido a slot telephone for thoso boroughs, in order tiiat residents may have telephoning facilities throughout tie twenty-four hours.

Two mushrooms came to ths "Press" olfico in Oliristoliiii'olij cent by Mr, D. Hampton, from "Tho Homestead," Gulvcrdeii, of exceptional size. Olio turned tlio ecal-o at Ijlb., and tlio otiior at just under lib., and both wefo particularly firm and good in colour. In his accompanying letter, Mr. Hampton rcentioned that there ivcro many rnoro weighing up to lib. each.

Tho quality of hemp exported from Southland tills year is Said to bo a great improreifioiit on that of past years (says tho "Soathland Tim.eS_ i, This to a grdat extent, it is considered, is due to tho wido margin between prices that have been obtainable for "good fair" and "common.." Ilia latter has been lnnr". or less a drug on tho market, and there has been an added incentive for millers to ten out- nothing but tho best. Striving for a higher quality is after all the most economic method, as "high point fair" ia Certainly a much more remunerative proposition titan "low point fair." Tho output from Southland will this year constitute s record, and, leaving pos* sibie floods out of the question, the gntisfatrtofy swing of tho pendulum should' continue.

Fifty years ago- the immigrant Bhips Heh tflrn and ifcmbay dropped anchor ■in Waii'€ES.;a Harbour, bringing' 287 p'.i'o'fieers :o Xc-if Zealand, and the jubilee of_ these early arrivals, the Auckland "Staff" anEotiric.es, is about to be cele* bnstfid at Auckland by the survivorß and', tho fecsndants of the .ships' companies. Tfcg- Helvcllyn., commanded by Captain G, B, Btires, left Gravesend on July 14, 1563, and dropped anchor at North Head on November 11 of the same year, after a v ova go of four months. The Bombay, an East. India tea clipper, weighed anchor nt Gravesend on August 2.6, and berthed at tho Auckland wharf on December 8, having made the rim in three weeks less titan tlio time occupied by the Helveilyn. Tlio Bombay was commanded hy Captain Solla rs, and carried 17S pioneers. There were 112 passengers on the Helvcllyn.

Sjwtt'kfflg at the meeting of tho Canterbury Philosophical Institute, tlio Mayor .of _ ChristcliUrch (6ayg tlio "Pross") said that in view o,f industrial troubles such as were prevailing nt present, it was an advantage to liavo the electric current for tho city generated by wator power instead of by steaiii, for even if'tho men all went out on atriko tho water would still run down hill. Tho only difficulty was that tho wires might do cut, but that Would be _a dangerous a&pariment to tho man trying it, seeing tljat they would bo charged with 66,000 volts.

When tlio Mnkara 'County Council Biofc for special business yesterday morning, tli© chairman iiifoTtiied members that tho reason of Councillor Taylor not being present was tho death of his fatiior on tfio previous day, and lib moved "That this council tenders to Councillor Taylor its stneert sympathy and condolonco on tho death of his father, and places on the records of tlio council its appreciation of tho lows services TCji* do red by tho late Jlr James Taylor in his capacity as member-of tho old' Provincial Council, ninl subsequently as a member of tho Ilutt County Council."